Adrian’s heart skipped a beat. The mysterious figure stepped fully into the flickering light of the burning city streets, and the smoke cleared just enough for him to see the face.It was Mara, the strategist he had once trusted above all others a woman he had believed dead, erased from existence during the consortium’s internal purges. Her eyes were cold, calculating, but there was a hint of something more: a personal vendetta.“Mara… you’re alive?” Adrian whispered, disbelief and fear tangled in his voice.She smiled, but it was sharp, predatory. “Alive, yes. Loyal… to you? No. You left me to die, Adrian. And now… you’ll pay.”Adrian’s stomach churned. The realization hit him like a physical blow. Mara had been orchestrating parts of Phase Two behind the rider’s back. Lucas had been following orders but she had been the real mastermind, manipulating both sides to her advantage.Emily’s eyes widened. “She… she knows everything?”Adrian shook his head, steel gripping his voice. “Every

Adrian’s fingers bled, gripping the jagged edge of the rooftop as the structure tilted violently beneath him. Dust, debris, and smoke filled every corner of the crumbling city.Every heartbeat throbbed like a drum of impending doom. Emily and Grayson clung beside him, their muscles taut, eyes wide with fear and determination.Above, the rider lunged again, blade slicing the air with lethal precision. Lucas advanced on Emily, weapon poised. And Mara watched from across the street, calm and calculating, orchestrating the chaos like a conductor of destruction.Adrian’s mind raced. Every path was lethal. Every movement had to be perfect. One wrong step, and they would plunge into the inferno below, their bodies crushed by collapsing steel and concrete.“We have to move now!” Adrian shouted, voice strained, adrenaline coursing through his veins. Emily nodded, her grip tightening. Grayson adjusted his stance, preparing to act on Adrian’s signal.Adrian spotted a series of hanging steel beam

Emily and Grayson teetered beside him, eyes wide with fear, but determination glinting in their gaze. The rider in black advanced slowly, blade poised, ready to strike at the first falter.Lucas raised his weapon, aiming precisely at Emily. Mara’s cold gaze swept over them, orchestrating the destruction with calculated precision.Adrian’s mind raced. They couldn’t fight their enemies here, the rooftop was collapsing faster than anticipated. They had to move, but the gap to the adjacent building looked impossible.“Emily, Grayson, listen carefully,” Adrian whispered, teeth clenched. “We jump together. Timing has to be perfect. One slip, we all die.”Emily swallowed hard. “Are you insane?”“Maybe,” Adrian admitted, “but it’s our only shot.”Adrian counted silently, muscles coiled, eyes locked on the other building. He swung from the beam with every ounce of strength left, propelling himself through the air. Sparks flew as metal scraped metal.Emily followed, her leap timed perfectly wit

Emily and Grayson crouched beside him, muscles taut and faces pale, but determined. Lucas and the rider teetered dangerously close to the collapsing edge. Mara’s cold eyes glimmered across the street, calculating every move with surgical precision.Adrian knew there was only one way to survive, he had to force the enemies off the unstable rooftop without losing themselves in the process. One slip and they all would plunge into the inferno below.“Emily, Grayson,” Adrian whispered, teeth clenched, “we make our move now. Timing is everything. Follow my lead.”Emily nodded, swallowing fear, while Grayson tensed his muscles, ready to act.Adrian lunged at the rider, blade sparking violently against hers. Sparks flew as metal clashed, echoing through the smoke filled city. The rooftop beneath the rider cracked further with every strike, concrete splintering ominously.Emily struck Lucas with precision, forcing him backward. Grayson fired a warning shot, making the balance even more precari

Adrian’s arms trembled violently, blood and sweat mixing as he clung to the fractured rooftop edge. Flames roared below, twisting steel groaned ominously, and chunks of debris rained around them in a torrent of destruction.The city had become a living weapon under Mara’s control, every street, building, and collapsing structure working against them.Emily’s grip on the adjacent beam was equally desperate. Grayson clung beside them, muscles taut and nerves stretched to the limit. Each movement could trigger the rooftop’s collapse and send them plummeting into the inferno.The rider lunged again, blade cutting a deadly arc. Lucas pressed forward, weapon aimed at Emily, while Mara’s eyes gleamed across the street, cold and calculating. The tension was unbearable every second a battle against gravity, chaos, and enemies alike.Adrian’s mind raced. They couldn’t continue to fight here. The rooftop was failing faster than they could anticipate. He had to act and fast.“Emily, Grayson, list